Stabilized coupler for tractor drawn trailers



Aug. 29, 1939. G. P. HUMPHREY STABILIZED COUPLER FOR TRACTOR DRAWN TRAILERS Filed Feb. 10, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. azysfffym vfqy,

BY W

fijg/ M ATTORNEY.

Aug. 29, 1939. e. P. HUMPHREY STABILIZED COUPLER FOR TRACTOR DRAWN TRAILERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 10, 1938 INVENTOR. azyefrffyw wirqy ATTORNEY.

Patented Aus- 2 1939 2,170,898

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE STABILIZED COUPLER FOR- TRACTOR DRAWN TRAILERS George Palmer Humphrey, Mount Vernon, N. 1

Application February 10, 1938, Serial No. 189,743

Claims. (Cl. 280-331) This invention relates, generally, to improvetruck or power driven vehicle, and 2 indicates a ments in means for detachably coupling trailers trailer adapted to be coupled with and drawn by to tractor-trucks; and the invention has refersaid tractor-truck. ence, more particularly, to a coupler mechanism At the rearward end portion of its frame 3,

5 having novel stabilizing means to prevent undue the tractor-truck is providedwith a fifth-wheel 5 swaying or skidding of a trailer whergoperatively means which constitutes an operative part of the coupled to and drawn along by a tractor truck. coupler mechanism for connecting the trailer 2 The invention has for its principai object to with said tractor-truck. This fifth-wheel means provide in combination with coupler mechanism is of a type well known to the art, and comfor interconnecting a tractor and trailer in pivprises a fifth-wheel member 4 having a centrally 10 otal relation, including relatively rotatable memdisposed rearwardly open king-pin receiving bers, a hydraulic check or stabilizer means in socket 5 having an outwardly and laterally flarcooperation with said members for arresting uning entrance passage or mouth 6. Said fifthdue sudden swaying or skidding of the trailer wheel member 4 is provided with a dependent relative to the tractor. peripheral flange or skirt 4'. Secured to the 15 The invention has for a further objectto proopposite lateral sides of said fifth-wheel member vide a novel trailer carried king-pin mechanism are rocker mountings l, which are fulcrumed adapted to cooperate with a tractor-truck carried upon shafts 8 supported in the stationary stradfifth-whe'el mechanism for coupling the trailer dle bearings 9 suitably affixed to a bed-plate I0 to the tractor-truck, said king-pin mechanism mounted on and affixed to the body platform or 20 including a novel stabilizer and anti-skid check frame of the tractor-truck. By this a r means adapted to exercise such control over the ment, free rocking movement about a transverse trailer that skidding, jack-knifing, undue side axis is permitted to the fifth-wheel member. sway and similar undesired or sudden movements Suitably affixed to and supported by the frame are efficiently prevented,without, however, interll of the trailer 2 is a carrier plate I2 upon 25 fering with normal pivoting movements of the which is mounted a combined king-pin and statrailer when drawn by the tractor-truck around bilizer or anti-skid check means. This latter turns, curving roadways, or otherwise subjected means comprises a chambered body l3 closed to normal traction movements. at its upper side by an integral top wall H, but

0 Other objects of this invention, not at this open at its underside. Contiguous to its open time more particularly enumerated,will be underunderside, said body i3 is provided with an anstood from the following detailed description of nular flange I5. The open underside of said body the same. ,is closed by a bottom plate 16 which is provided An illustrative embodiment of this invention is with an annular depressed seat I! to receive said shown in the accompanying drawings, in which: flange IS. A sealing gasket I8 is disposed with- 35 Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a tractor-truck and in the seat ll, intermediate the same and said trailer in coupled relation, parts of the trailer flange l5, and the body and bottom plate are being broken away to show the novel stabilized secured toge in assembled relation y o t coupler mechanism made according to this invenl9 or other suitable fastening means. The astion. sembled body and bottom plate are in turn fix- 40 Fig. 2 is a plan view of the trailer carried kingedly secured to the carrier plate l2 by rivets 20 pin mechanism; Fig. 3 is a horizontal section or other suitable fastening means. taken on line 3-3 in Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a vertical Centrally loc ed in t bOttOm P e s a longitudinal section, taken on line 4-4 in Fig. bearing 2| through which extends a rotatable 2, but drawn on an enlarged scale; Fig. 5 is a king-pin 22. Associated with said bearing 2| is 45 horizontal section, taken on line 55 in Fig. 4, a downwardly open stufling-box chamber 23 and Fig. 6 is an end view of a valve port and the through which the exteriorly projecting end porvalve rod supporting means thereof with which tion of said king-pin 22 extends. Suitable packthe check-plate of the king-pin mechanism is ing material 24 is retained within said chamber 50. provided. 23 and around the king-pin 22 by a gland 25 Similar characters of reference are employed which is threaded into said smiling-box chamber. in the above described views, to indicate corre- Said carrier plate I2 isprovided with an opensponding parts. ing 26 through which the gland may be applied,

Referring to the drawings, the reference charand through which the lower exterior end poractor I indicates any suitable type of tractortion of the king-pin may project. 55

Formed in the top wall H of said body I3 is a bearing 21, the same being aligned with said lower bearing 2|, and being sized to receive a journal or trunnion portion 28 with which the upper end of said king-pin 22 is provided.

Integrally formed in connection with said body extending check-plate, 30 having a. peripheral shape adapted to conform: to and closely fit the radial cross-sectional area .ofthe body chamber. Under operative conditions, this check-plate 30 occupies a fixediposition relative to and preferably in alignment with the longitudinal axis' of the tractor-truck I. Said check-plate 30 divides the annular chamber 'of said body fll3 intoQtwo sections lying respectively on oppositejsides there- 7 of, the same being, for conveniencelof description, designated herein ascompartmentA on one side, and compartment 13, onxthe otherv side. These compartments are filled-with a suitable liquid C, such, e. g., as anoil of suitable viscosity. To permit the introduction of the liquid C, the top wall I of the body I3 is provided with one or more filling openings normally closed by remov able plug means 3|.

Said check-plate 30 is provided with one or more valve ports 32 to provide normally open means of communication through the checkplate from one compartment to the other of said body chamber. Cooperative with the valve port is a spring balanced normally open valve means. An illustrative embodiment of this valve means comprises a valve rod 33 arranged to extend axially through the valve port. Preferably the latter is internally formed to provide guide ribs 34 to axially supportthe valve rod 33 for movement therein, while nevertheless leaving intermediate through passages for unimpeded liquid flow through said valve port. The opposite free ends of the valve rod 33 respectively project beyond opposite sides of the check-plate 30, said ends being respectively provided with valve discs and b afiixed thereto, and adapted, when operatively moved toward the check-plate, to close said valve port. Compression spring means 35-36 is arranged between each valve disc and the adjacent side of said check-plate. These springs 35-36 normally but yieldably balance the valve rod and valve discs in position whereby each valve disc is disposed in outwardly spaced relation to that face of the check-plate to which it is opposed, thus normally leaving the valve port passage open to the movement of liquid" therethrough in either direction.

The downwardly and exteriorly projecting end portion of the king-pin 22 is provided withan annularly reduced part or neck 31, and above. this part or neck 31 is a diametrically extending occurs the downwardly and exteriorly projecting lower end of the king-pin 22 enters through the passage or mouth 3 and thence into the receiving-socket 5 of the fifth-wheel member. Said fifth-wheel member is provided with means to loci! the king-pin against displacement from said socket 5. As ordinarily provided, this locking means comprises a locking hook l0 pivotally mounted on the .under side of the fifth-wheel member and provided with an exteriorly projecting handle lever 4| for manipulating the same. When the king-pin 22 is properly engaged in the socket 5, the locking hook 40 is turned to engage around and embrace the reduced neck .31. of :the king-pin 22, thus securing the latter, against vertical displacement relative to the fifth "wheel member as well as against withdrawal .from the socket 5 thereof. Means is provided 'jto secure the lockinghook 40 against accidental -.;=release from its operative engagement with the .king-pin 22.

prisesa manipulatable draw bolt 42 which co- "operates with a stop-nosing 43 carried by the One form of such means comhandle lever 41 in such manner that, when engaged therewith, said locking-hook III is prevented from turning about its pivotal connection with the fifth-wheel member in king-pin disengaging direction. Means is also provided for interlocking said king-pin 22 and its checkplate 30 against rotation'relative to said fifthwheel member, whereby relative turning movement is only permitted between the chambered bodyl3 and said king-pin and check-plate while the tractor-truck and trailer are operatively coupled together. This means, in one illustrative form thereof, comprises a retractible lock-pin l4, slidably supported by the fifth-wheel memher. When coupling the tractor-truck and trailer together, this lock-pin 44 is manually retracted, by means of the manipulating handle 45 at its outer end, until the king-pin 22 enters fully into the socket 5 of the fifth-wheel member, whereupon the inner end portion of said lock-pin 44 may be projected through the transverse aperture 38 of the king-pin 22, thus interlocking the same with the fifth-wheel member against turning movement relative to the latter.

In the operation of the coupler mechanism, characterized as above set forth, when the trailer 2 is coupled in normal longitudinal trailing alignment to and with the pulling tractortruck I, the check-plate 30, by reason of the interlocked relation of the king-pin 22 to the fifth-wheel member, has a fixed relation to the tractor-truck I, while the chambered body l3 and its partition 29 of the king-pin mechanism has a fixed relation to the trailer 2. When tractor-truck and trailer move along in normal longitudinal alignment the partition 23 and check-plate 30 occupy an aligned diametric disposition across the interior chamber of the body l3, thus dividing the latter into two equal liquid filled compartments A and B, which are in normal intercommunicating relation through the the relative movement between the partition 23 of chambered body l3 and the check-plate 30 of the king-pin 22, in either direction, will be permitted by thecompensating flow of the liquid C through the normally open valve-port 32 between the compartments A and B. If, however,

the king-pin mechanism of the latter. As this due to suddenly occurring side-sway movements,

skidding or jack-kniflng movements of the trailer 2 relative to the tractor-truck I, involving occurrence of abnormally rapid relative movements of said partition 29 and check-plate 30, a too sudden compression of the liquid C on one or the other side of the check-plate 30 will occur, so that the normally open relief valve of the latter will tend to close, thus arresting normal intercommunicating and compensating flow of liquid C from one chamber to the other, and consequently setting up a resistance to such sudden movements which will promptly act to arrest the same, thus preventing undue side sway, skidding or jack kniflng of the trailer relative to the tractor-truck. For example, if the sudden movement of the trailer is in a direction tending to too rapidly compress the liquid in compartment A, the sudden and excessive liquid pressure in the latter compartment will act upon the valve disc a, so as to force the same against tension of spring 35 to close the valve port 32, thus rapidly diminishing and eventually arresting flow of liquid C from compartment A to compartment 13, and consequently a resistance to the undesirable sudden side sway, skidding or jack-kniflng of the trailer is progressively and quickly accumulated with arresting ei'i'ect thereupon. If, on the other hand, the sudden movement of the trailer is in a direction tending to too rapidly compress the liquid in compartment B, the sudden and excessive liquid pressure in the latter compartment will act upon the valve disc I), so as to force the same against tension of spring 36 to likewise close the valve port 32 against flow of liquid from compartment B to compartment A, with like trailer sway, skidding or jack-kniflng arresting eifect.

' As many changes could be made in the above described constructions, and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, as defined by the following claims, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawlngs shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim- 1. In coupler mechanism for the purposes described, a tractor'carried fifth-wheel means incapable of rotative movement in horizontal plane, a king-pin releasably interengageable with said firth-wheel means in non-rotative relation thereto, a trailer carried liquid charged chambered body arranged in non-rotative relation to the trailer, said chambered body having bearscribed, fifth-wheel means, a king-pin adapted to be coupled with said fifth-wheel means, a liquid charged chambered body rotatably related to said king-pin, a valved check-plate within said chambered body, said check-plate being fixedly related to said king-pin, and means to hold said king-pin against rotation relative to said fltthwheel means when coupled therewith.

3. Coupler mechanism for the purposes dej scribed, comprising interengageable tractor-truck carried fifth-wheel means and trailer carried king-pin means, said latter means including a rotatively related liquid charged chambered body and a king-pin, said king-pin having a checkplate means dividing the interior of said chambered body into compartments, said check-plate means having valve port means to provide communication between said compartments, and normally open valve means cooperative with said valve port means, said valve means being adapted to close under excess liquid pressure developed in either compartment by sudden relative rotary movement of said chambered body and king-pin check-plate.

4. Coupler mechanism for the purposes described, comprising a tractor-truck carried fifthwheel means, a trailer carried king-pin means, said latter means including a rotatively related liquid charged chambered body and a king-pin, said' king-pin having a check plate means dividing the interior of said chambered body into compartments, said check-plate means having valve port means to provide normal communication. between said compartments, normally open valve means cooperative with said valve port means, said valve means being adapted to close under excess liquid pressure developed in either compartment by sudden relative rotary movement 01' said chambered body and king-pin check-plate, said king-pin having a portion exteriorly projecting from said chambered body, said fifthwheelmeans having means to receive and engage "said projecting portion of said king-pin, and

means to hold said king-pin against rotation relative to said fifth-wheel means when engaged therewith.

5. In mechanism for releasably coupling tractor and trailer vehicles, a firth-wheel means mounted on one of said vehicles so as to be incapable of rotative movement in horizontal plane, a king-pin rotatably mounted on the other of said vehicles and adapted to be coupled to said fifth-wheel means in stationary relation thereto, "and liquid charged check means chamber carried by said last named vehicle including liquid compression means connected with and actuated by the rotatable movements of said king-pin relative to said last named vehicle and the liquid charged check means chamber carried thereby.

GEORGE PALMER EUMPHRIY. 

